A Griffith Park hiking path for newcomers

Charles Fleming, Los Angeles Times

Griffith Park is L.A.'s largest city park, but at 4,200 hilly acres it's so large, and so mountainous, that hikers unfamiliar with the area may not know where to start. Here's a beginner's guide to a mellow, uncrowded walk with great views.

3. At the trail intersection, for a very strenuous hike, turn right to climb straight uphill to the peak. You can also turn left to descend to your starting point. Otherwise, walk straight ahead.

Griffith Park

Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times

Near the trail you can see the Greek Theatre, one of the best outdoor concert sites in the country.

Near the trail you can see the Greek Theatre, one of the best outdoor concert sites in the country. (Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times)

4. From here you'll get good city views and a bird's eye look at the Greek, which opened to the public in 1931 — four years before the Griffith Observatory opened — and still the city's best outdoor music venue.

5. Back on Vermont Canyon Road, turn right and walk uphill a short spell, following the path on the right side of the road.

Griffith Park

Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times

Griffith Observatory can be seen from one of the higher trails in the park, which is more than 4,200 acres.

Griffith Observatory can be seen from one of the higher trails in the park, which is more than 4,200 acres. (Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times)

6. At the old Bird Sanctuary, you'll find public restrooms, drinking fountains, picnic tables and, inside the sanctuary itself, a nice quarter-mile loop filled with varieties of trees that survived the 2007 Griffith Park fire and the enclosures where exotic birds once lived. The picnic table at the top of the loop is one of the park's nicest lunch spots.

Charles Fleming is the author of "Secret Stairs: A Walking Guide to the Historic Staircases of Los Angeles."